Radar Detector
by Ink-About-It
Summary: Girl meets girl. Inspired by the song "Radar Detector" by Darwin Deez. Disclaimer: I own nothing (On hold for 'The Odds')
1. Chapter 1: Girl Meets Girl

**Disclaimer : **Rizzoli & Isles is Tess Gerittsen's baby, adopted by Janet Tamaro and is currently in a serious relationship with Turner Network Television. The English language is pretty much public domain though. I hope.

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**1. Girl Meets Girl**

* * *

"Jane Rizzoli."

Maura gracefully whipped around at the sound of _that voice_, sending her golden brown locks cascading over her shoulder. Curious hazel instantly locked with deep chocolate in a wordless war of wills. A manicured eyebrow quirked in pointed anticipation and subtle appraisal, only to get a dimpled smirk and a very open appraisal in answer. Maura was the first to crack.

"I beg your pardon?" she asked, managing to sound unruffled.

The newly inaugurated Bostonian was already thoroughly confused and intrigued by this handsome stranger wearing simple dark jeans and a grey Henley shirt like some Levi's model, but _that voice_ is what kept her from walking on by. If she could just hear it again coupled with the visual of her lips…

"That's my name. What's yours?" came the cool and confident reply, though it wasn't much of an explanation.

"Maura Isles," she blurted without even a second thought as to why this tall, tanned, wild-haired, female Adonis was even looking in her general direction, let alone talking directly to her in this crowded Mall.

"Maura…" Jane repeated, dragging the word out as if savoring the feel and taste of it on her tongue and past her lips for the very first time. Truth is, she was getting lost in _those eyes_. Those infinite pools of youthful green and soulful hazel brown, and at certain angles catching the light to reflect brilliant gold flecks. Jane briefly closed her eyes to steel herself before letting out a breathy chuckle, which fast became Maura's new favorite sound in the entire multi-verse.

"Jane" said the honey-brunette simply, with a sparkle in her eyes. Jane smiled back, liking the way her plain, boring name rolled slickly off the other girl's tongue. But then she spoke on. "May I ask what, uh- I-I'm sorry, was there something-" Maura fumbled for the right segue before being put out of her misery with a simple question.

"You hungry?" asked Jane with a nonchalant shrug and hands in her pockets.

Well, that certainly wasn't even on the long list of things she expected to hear next. Of course she had been on her feet for the better part of the day after a very light breakfast but for a complete stranger to pick up on that right away is absurd, isn't it? Do I look hungry?

Catching herself before her brain ran off on it's own, Maura realised she was still in the company of a very lovely young lady who was waiting for an answer to a very simple question. At that very moment Maura figured this was as great an opportunity as any to possibly make a companion in this new town. Deciding to 'go with the flood', as they say, and see what happens.

"That depends," she retorted with a faux-aloofness, taking a step closer as if she were about to reveal a deep, dark, juicy secret.

Following her lead, Jane diminished the gap between them even further in one stride of her long legs, asking "Depends on what?"

"It has to be Italian", Maura quipped with a cute little wink.

Jane barked out in brief laughter, deciding that was officially the most adorable thing she'd seen in a while, especially having not expected that from the outwardly shy and reserved young girl she had noticed earlier walking out of a book-store with actual books. On a Friday. This was a very welcome surprise.

Easily ignoring the fact that they were hardly the only people in the world, both girls eyed each other with goofy grins plastered on their young faces before Jane boldly and smoothly slipped her hand out of her pocket and into Maura's free hand, never breaking their gaze.

"I know a place. I'll drive?"

It was more a question of whether Maura would trust a total and complete stranger to drive her to who-knows-where without at least a proper background check. Jane was hoping she'd say yes, but would have understood if Maura decided she didn't want to be taken to a "_2nd location_". Thank you, Oprah.

"I suppose we both wouldn't fit on my bicycle, huh?"

Cute, thought Jane as they started a relaxed pace towards the exit, but took that response as a yes and ran with it.

"I don't see either of us _fitting_ in the basket, let alone being comfortable there the whole ride."

Maura eyed her suspiciously.

"How did you know it had a basket?"

"Where else would you keep your books?"

The way Jane said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world caused Maura to literally giggle like a lovesick Cupidroid. It surprised them both, but in the most charming way.

When they got outside, Jane stuffed Maura's bike in the boot of her fixer-upper before they drove off in high hopes and spirits, and hunger.

* * *

They were in their own little world, talking about every single nothing that popped into their crazy uncensored teenage heads over pizza and soda, at Jane's insistence of course. She entertained Maura with tales of the troublesome trio of Rizzoli kids and war stories from the baseball field and basketball court. She found she loved the sound of Maura's laughter way too much not to try and provoke it as much as she possibly could, and it felt good to share the nonsense with someone. Plus, she got very acquainted with Maura's "googlemouth", as she so affectionately dubbed it.

Maura was a captivated audience, her eyes alight in awe and attraction. At her tender age, she was nevertheless smart enough to accurately diagnose these tingly feelings for what they were, and she was very nearly certain Jane felt the same.

"So, want me to take you home?"

They had finished their meal and were walking slowly hand-in-hand down the street towards Jane's car. Neither wanted their impromptu "date" to end just yet, but voicing it was becoming a challenge for some reason.

A little spoilt by the ease of the day thus far, Maura spoke before she even thought to maybe consult with her brain first. Not that she had much of a filter anyway.

"I would prefer if we continued this date for as long as possible so I can build the courage to finally kiss you."

They stopped.

"Did I say something wrong?" asked Maura in a meek tone, brows furrowing at feeling suddenly and overwhelmingly embarrassed for possibly sharing too much and breaking the spell they were under.

"No, I just-" a chuckle broke out of the taller girl's throat, "I was thinking the exact same thing."

Maura's dimpled smile returned, all the way to her eyes, and they both laughed out loud at how ridiculous it all was. And how was it that they were so different yet so in-tune with the other? Luckily, the newfound knowledge of each other's intentions didn't add any layer of awkwardness. Anticipation? Absolutely!

When they finally got to the car, Jane offered to take them to a nearby movie-house. Maura only nodded with that unwavering smile and got into the passenger seat.

* * *

They watched some movie called something-something, with some person in it, somewhere, doing something for some reason that some… Truth be told, 10 minutes into the film, the two touchy teens were already about 8 minutes into each other's mouths with a pretty heavy make-out session. It's hard to tell who initiated it or when and how Maura managed to maneuver herself into Jane's lap, straddling it, but neither cared enough to retrace their steps if it meant detaching their lips.

A small whimper caused them to break apart, though not far, and assess the situation and their surroundings.

"Sorry," Maura started a little shyly, panting softly. "I-"

"Shh…" an index finger shushed Maura's kiss-swollen lips, "It's okay," she whispered, "I just think that maybe we should, uh," Jane looked around at the half-full room while forming her next words "continue _this_ somewhere a little more…" Jane relied on ambiguous hand gestures to relay her thoughts, which, surprisingly, worked.

"Oh! Yes. You're right. We should go to your car."

"Yeah. My car. After you."

As inconspicuously as possible, the party of two made their way out of the dark cinema and into the darkness of the evening, having earlier parked in a relatively secluded area away from potential party poopers. It was getting late, but they were just getting started… _fogging up the windows_.

Some time later, Maura found herself lying under Jane with her dress riding up past her gyrating hips, thighs wide open to accommodate her companion's own narrow, slowly grinding, jeans-clad hips, and her hands either tangled in Jane's thick raven locks or frantically stroking the toned abs under her top. She had no idea how uncomfortable that position was in the backseat of a car because all she could feel right then were Jane's lips on her neck. Wow.

Through her lust-filled haze, Maura was also very aware of Jane's hands either gently kneading her breasts through the material of her confining dress or caressing her soft, bare thighs, but somehow still managing not to crush her with the force of her weight, and need.

All Jane could do at that point was groan and pant like a possessed animal while trying to give and take as much pleasure as she could without going too far, but when she found one of her hands creeping dangerously close to Maura's heated center, she immediately blanched and stopped everything, pushing up on extended arms.

"Whoa." She felt dizzy with desire as she gasped for air to try and calm the Hell down, but her head swam from the sudden movement, or lack thereof. She shook her head to try and get the world back into focus.

The weak whimper that her cease in actions produced was almost enough to make her continue full-force. Almost.

When Maura realised that Jane was no longer doing anything to her, her eyes looked up to find Jane shaking her head. "Wha- what's wrong? Why'd you stop?" she asked in a sobering panic, licking her panting lips as her eyes searched Jane's for an answer.

"Nothing's wrong. Relax." Jane made it a point to smile reassuringly and maintain eye contact. "I just don't think I'll ever be able to stop, if we don't stop _now_." Jane's dilated pupils shamelessly raked over Maura's prone form, confirming to herself how true her words were.

Maura's smile crept back up as she caressed Jane's cheek. "Then don't stop," she said. Jane turned her head to kiss the delicate palm of the most perfect girl she's ever met, never breaking their stare.

"I want to, so-o-o badly," a shiver went up her spine as she noticed Maura's eyes were completely black, but she hastily amended, "I think it's time I drove you home, okay?"

Jane quickly climbed off of Maura, trying very hard to ignore the look of confusion she garnered. Getting out of the car to fix her clothes and give Maura space to do so as well, Jane couldn't stop a big, goofy grin from enveloping her face. _Woo! Wow-wow-wow-wow. Oh boy. That was…Woo!_

Meanwhile, Maura was wondering what on earth had gotten into Jane, or out of her in this case. She went from hot to cold in a nanosecond and now the smart bookworm was left feeling dumbfounded. Was it something she did or said, or didn't do or say that caused her to retract her advances? That was the furthest she'd ever gotten with anyone, ever, and it was _amazing_… Goosebumps prickled her skin at the memory of mere moments ago. She was starting to really, really like Jane, but now she's gone and fudged it up somehow. Maura felt embarrassed, to say the least, then angry at herself and then angry at Jane. For what, she wasn't completely sure.

* * *

The ride to the Isles estate was dead quiet and alive with tension. At first, sensing a hot to cold shift in Maura's demeanor, Jane tried turning the radio on but soon shut it back off when the noise became more annoying than relaxing. As soon as they pulled up to the driveway she didn't even have a chance to marvel at the ridiculous size of the mansion in front of her before Maura was already out the passenger side and marching on home.

"Wait! Maura, wait!" Jane shouted rushing to the other side of the car. Scrambling for something to say, she came up with, "Your bike!"

Maura stopped having completely forgotten about that, and took a shaky breath while folding her arms around herself as if to hold herself together a little while longer.

Jane saw this as an in, so she got the bike out of her trunk, but held onto it until she got Maura's attention again.

Then Maura whirled around to face Jane with teary eyes. At the sore sight, Jane felt like someone had punched the air right out of her lungs. What the Hell was going on? Maura looked so broken in that very moment, Jane had to fight not to crush the girl in a fierce hug.

The tearful girl looked away, sniffling, waiting for Jane to give her things back to her.

"Maura, c'mon. Talk to me."

Maura rolled her eyes and walked up to try and grab her bike from Jane's grasp, but that proved fruitless since Jane was much stronger and equally stubborn. They had a bit of a tug-of-war before Maura totally lost it.

"Jane!" she shouted angrily before automatically regaining some of her well-practiced poise. "Please," she pled, "Can we just forget this day ever happened?"

Surprised and confused, but mostly hurt, Jane asks "What? Why"

"I just-" Maura's breathing was starting to ratchet up and she just couldn't get her next words out without coming off a bit shy, but she pushed through. "If you changed your mind about… liking me-"

"Maura, where is this coming from?"

"I j-just" sniffle "wish-sh-sh you" whimper "ha-hadn't ledmeooon…"

Although her voice was pretty low, the sobs were wracking Maura's body so violently, to the point where her speech was almost unintelligible. Dropping the bike with a clatter, as Jane strode over to embrace the upset girl, she could make out a strangled "I- thought you- liked me."

That was it for Jane. She had to set things straight. So to speak.

"Maura, look at me. Jesus, of course I like you. Do you know how much self-control it took for me not to just take you in the back-seat tonight?" she punctuated with a tilt in her car's direction. "But I had to stop. I just had to. _Because_ I like you. Maur, I know it feels like we've known each other for so long, and I feel like that too. It's not some game to me. But it's only been a day. All of this" she gestured between them "happened in one day. It may sound cliché, but we were moving way too fast, and I sure as Hell don't want our first time to be in the back of this piece of sh-crap, I mean, we aren't even officially dating yet. I know you're not that kind of girl." Jane held Maura's face in her hands, wiping away the tears. "Please say you understand."

Maura nodded her head slowly after mulling over what she'd just heard. It actually made complete sense, and now she felt a fool for jumping to such wild conclusions; insulting Jane's character like that. They had their first date, first kiss, almost had sex and had their first fight all within the first day of having met. In hindsight it became a little overwhelming.

"I am so sorry, Jane. I don't know what I even- you must think I'm such an idiot-" she said hiding her face in the crook of Jane's neck.

"I don't. Promise. But next time maybe give me a chance to explain, yeah?"

Maura's head peeked out at the thought.

"Next time?" she asked, at the risk of sounding optimistic.

"Yeah, of course. I had a great time… for the most part, and I'd like to see you again. As in, a date. If you're free, I mean- I don't mean to assume or anything-"

"Yes! I'll go on a date with you. And I promise I'll never doubt you again."

"Well, only unless I give you reason to."

Maura just nodded.

"Good. Tomorrow I'll sweep you off your feet."

Maura smiled into a slow, lingering kiss before they pulled apart within an inch of each other, breathing the same air.

"Jane, no matter what happens for the rest of my life, today has been the best..."

"Don't get ahead of yourself now. It only gets better from here. And I ain't going nowhere."

Maura kissed Jane's dimpled chin.

"Anywhere," she corrected.

Jane kissed Maura on the nose.

"Thanks, googlemouth."

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**A/N:** I appreciate you taking the time to read my first published fanfiction story. Review if you like.


	2. Chapter 2: Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

**2. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun(eral)**

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"Mm… these sheets are really comfy. What did you say they were made of again? Angel wings and baby bottoms?"

Maura chuckled at Jane's silliness and turned onto her side to get a better view of the snoozing athlete. Propping her head up on her hand she answered, "No, Jane. Not only is there insufficient scientific evidence to prove that angels do in fact exist, unless you use the scientific "empirical" approach which depends on case studies as such to support the theory, I don't see how-"

It was the sound of snoring which gave Maura pause.

"Jane?"

It wouldn't have been the first time she had bored someone to sleep, unfortunately, but never had it happened so fast. To make absolutely certain, she observed Jane's facial movements for a little while longer. When nostrils flared and a slow dimpled smile involuntarily crept onto the other girl's face, Maura knew she had been duped.

"Jane!"

"Ow! What's with the abuse?" Jane protested when a swift smack in the arm jolted her from her mirth. She just couldn't help laughing though.

"That wasn't funny. I thought I'd bored you to sleep." Maura pouted.

"Of course not, I was just resting my eyes, for the better to hear you, my dear." Jane purred while propping her own head up to face Maura.

"Care to explain the fake snoring?"

With a quirk of a manicured eyebrow, hazel challenged deep brown.

"Uh… no, but please continue. I was actually listening, y'know?"

Maura let it slide, only because it felt nice to have Jane's undivided attention.

"Well, to answer your original question, _these_ sheets are made of Pima cotton." She slid her unoccupied hand across the space between them over said sheets. "It bears some similarity to many forms of Egyptian cotton, but it's also considered to be one of the superior blends, and is extremely durable and absorbent."

Jane smirked at that and she pitched her voice down low for her next words.

"And why would sheets need to be… 'durable' and… 'absorbent', Ms. Isles?"

Observing the way Jane's eyes sparkled with some sort of hidden meaning, the young science enthusiast sensed a slight shift in the atmosphere. Deciding it was neither the time, nor place, to start anything, Maura opted for a safer territory of conversation.

"Well, for one, I would recommend it for people who go to bed without taking their shoes off," she said pointedly.

Jane laughed and retorted, "Oh, you'd just love that, wouldn't you? You and your foot fetish."

"You're incorrigible," laughed Maura, pushing Jane's shoulder while allowing her own body to flop back onto the pillows.

A beat or two later…

"Say, Maur? Who's that creepy old man watching us over there?"

Maura looked in the direction of Jane's curious gaze. She squinted.

"Evidenced by the words engraved on his name tag, I would say he's the Store Manager."

Unfazed, Jane continued in a nonchalant way, "Huh… I'm kinda dozing off here. Wanna get outta here?" She was getting bored more than anything.

"He just had a word with Security, so that would be wise to do at this point."

Jane leisurely lifted the bed covers off her legs. Maura was out of bed, hurriedly putting on her shoe when she heard the Store Manager's order.

"Get them!"

The girls sprinted out of the mattress shop and headed down the pavement, dodging innocent bystanders, while two guards huffed and puffed not far behind.

"Stop them!" they shouted after the fast female fugitives.

Luckily, no one cared to interfere in this entertaining foot-race. When Jane rounded a corner, she looked back to find Maura struggling to run with one shoe on and the other in her hand.

"Ditch the shoes and run, Maura!"

"Not my Prada's! I'd rather get caught!"

If she could have, the tough tomboy would have rolled her eyes, but instead she made another sharp turn and entered what looked to be a little flower shop, then grabbed Maura before she passed by it. They hid behind a few large bouquets and stood as still as mannequins. If those mannequins had just gotten back from a marathon, that is.

Watching with baited breath as the men following them abruptly stopped in front of the display window, the girls spied through an arrangement of yellow snapdragons.

One of the men bent over at his waist and put his hands on his knees to catch his breath. The teenage fugitives couldn't hear what they were discussing, but after a few moments of back-and-forth deliberation, both men shook their heads and headed back the way they came from.

Jane and Maura released a synchronized sigh of sweet relief.

"Phew, that was close."

"But Jane..."

"What's wrong?"

"My shoe got scuffed."

Even now that she actually could, Jane still didn't roll her eyes when she took in the full extent of Maura's distress over her ruined shoe. She looked at the shoe in Maura's hand. It probably cost more than her car, she mused.

"What 15-year old wears Prada anyway?" asked as she inspected the wounded footwear.

"As far as I know, there is no age restriction on taste, Jane. I appreciate the aesthetic quality and craftsmanship that went into making these shoes…" sniffle "And now they're ruined," she all but whined.

Then Maura's water broke. Figuratively. Jane panicked. Literally.

"Hey, whoa. Don't cry. I'm sure your shoes will be fine with a bit of, uh, craftsmanship."

"I can't control the connection between my amygdala and lachrymal gland." Maura pouted.

Before Jane could think of anything more to say to try and calm the upset girl down, they were greeted by a kind aged voice.

"Excuse me, dears. Is something the matter?" asked the old lady offering a tissue in the direction of the distressed damsel. She was a short, grey-haired black woman with spectacles right on the tip of her nose. She had a worried look in her tired eyes, and something about her made Jane think she was well-practiced at offering a sympathetic ear.

Jane answered for Maura.

"She'll be fine. She's just... going through... something."

Drawing her own conclusions from the scene in front of her, she offered a tissue, "Oh, I'm so sorry for your loss, sweetheart."

Maura looked up at the genuine concern. She accepted and dabbed the offered tissue under her eyes before delicately blowing her nose.

"Thank you, Ma'am."

"Call me Dorothy. _Ma'am_ just makes me feel my age," she said with a smile.

Maura smiled back brightly. "My middle name is Dorothea, but you can call me Maura."

What a coincidence, thought Jane as she watched on in amusement as the two got to talking about their shared name and what it means, then about flowers and their meanings, then somewhere in the middle of it all, Jane realized while looking around that they weren't in an actual flower shop - but a funeral parlor.

"These flowers are beautiful, Dorothy," complimented the young fashionista.

"Why thank you, Maura-dear. Were you looking to purchase some?"

Jane's ears perked at that. How long would it take for Maura to get a clue?

"Oh, no. I- we, Jane and I, we were just passing through." Maura was a bad liar... but a master at working her way around the truth. Telling the sweet old woman that they came into her shop to get away from a pair of Security guards didn't seem like a very good idea.

"Oh. I just thought that because of... your _loss_, you may need some assistance."

Maura looked confused.

"No, that won't be necessary. I have plenty of shoes." Maura assured her.

Now Ms. Dorothy looked confused.

"Shoes? Pardon me but what does that have to do with-"

Jane decided it was high time she butted into the conversation, so she did.

"What Maura means is that, uhm, she lost her... goldfish, Prada, and we already flushed him so flowers won't be needed. But thanks." then she whispered into Maura's ear, hoping Dorothy had stereotypically bad hearing. "We're in a funeral parlor. She thinks someone died, so play along."

Light bulb.

"Oh, goodness me. I just thought that, from how upset you looked... I'm sure Prada is at peace wherever... sh-he... is..."

"I- you're very kind, thank you." replied the grieving girl, finally catching on.

"Just doing my job, dear."

"Better you than me, Dorothy. I was never good with... living people."

"Oh?"

"Oh yes. I just can never seem to conform to the normal standard of socially accepted etiquette outside of my own upbringing… Which is why I'd like to be a medical examiner."

"A- oh."

"The dead are much easier to decipher. And they don't judge nor lie."

There was a long moment of silence in the room.

Clearing her throat, the senior citizen declared, "Alright, well, I should get back to work. Nice meeting you both," backing away towards the far counter.

Jane sensed that old Dorothy may have been a little weirded out by Maura's declaration, but she was still nice about it. She took the smaller girl's hand and led her out of the shop.

"That's... really cool y'know. Not many people have the guts to deal with guts. I wanna be a detective. Homicide."

"Really?" Maura imagined Jane with a gun and badge and, although she had a rebellious streak as evidenced by their earlier rendezvous, it made perfect sense to her.

"Yeah." Jane nodded, a little shy having never divulged her dream to anyone before Maura. "Maybe we'll work together some day. You'll 'speak' for the dead, and I'll, catch the perps who killed 'em."

"Speak for the dead. That's exactly what I want to do, and I'm sure we'd make a formidable team… Detective Rizzoli." she winked.

"Yeah, Dr. Isles. And maybe you can, uh, examine my body some time?" Jane didn't care anymore how cheesy she sounded as they headed towards her car.

Maura looked appalled and confused.

"Jane, you would have to be legally dead for me to do that."

Of course, trust Maura Isles to be so literal. Jane rolled her eyes with a groan.

"Did I miss something?" Maura asked, already knowing she had.

"Y'know, you're the dumbest genius I know," came the deadpan response.

"I'm the _only_ genius you know."

"That, is not the point."

"What is your point then?"

"My point is that I just called you dumb. React." Jane unlocked her car door and they got in.

Maura laughed out loud at her... friend?'s childish behavior.

"I'm sorry, am I supposed to take you seriously?"

Mischievous deep brown whipped around to lock with playful hazel eyes. Jane leaned into the other girl and kissed her softly.

Maura kissed her back feverishly, with tongue and everything. When they pulled apart, their lungs sucked air in greedily.

"Is that reaction enough for you?"

Jane smiled then started the car.

"Not bad, but our date's only just started."

"You mean there's more after being head-hunted then conning an old lady?"

"Oh yeah. Buckle up, Dorothy. We're off to see the wizard."

"Don't make fun of me."

Jane laughed as they drove off into the sunset... well, the name of the road was Sunset anyway. You know what I mean.

* * *

**A/N:** Plot? What plot? Thanks for reading. Review if you like.


	3. Chapter 3: Gaydar Detector

**3. Gaydar Detector**

* * *

"Jane, where are we?" asked the socially retarded genius, although judging by the dimply smile plastered on her face, she knew exactly where they were.

"Oh, dear sweet Maura. The better question is: where _aren't_ we?" Jane winked.

She put the car into park and got out, rushing around to open Maura's door for her. She'd always wanted to do that, but girls were always so quick to get out of the damn car. Maura smiled and allowed the chivalrous gesture, though she was still confused.

"I don't follow."

Jane shut Maura's door.

"Then you'd better start following **me**. Consider me your yellow brick road."

"Stop teasing me."

"Last one, I promise."

They headed towards the entrance, hand-in-hand, obviously.

"Aren't you glad I had a spare pair of shoes in the car?"

Maura glanced down at her feet but didn't get a chance to answer that, luckily.

"Janie?"

Jane stopped dead in her tracks. That voice sounded awfully familiar. She turned around, only to have her suspicions confirmed.

Busted.

"Frankie?" she asked, rhetorically. "What are you doing here? I thought you were at a Comic Club meeting."

"I, uh…" Frankie started, scratching the back of his neck. "I thought you were helping out at the homeless shelter."

Jane rolled her eyes at that. He was deflecting, she knew. Scratching his neck is his tell.

"C'mon, Frankie. I don't think even Ma fell for that one."

The Rizzoli siblings snickered as if at an inside joke. Maura and Frankie's companion looked on in amazement at how similar the two Italians' demeanors were. Not to mention the way they were dressed and their brooding good looks.

"Yeah, I think that was your worst attempt yet. At least Comic Club is believable."

Maura then remembered Jane mentioning her brother's obsession with 'graphic novels' and how she always made fun of him, even though she secretly liked them too.

"Yeah, well, unless the meetings moved to here… whatcha doin' here, lil bro?" Jane fished with a suspicious glint, looking back and forth between Frankie and whoever his friend was.

"I, uh…" Frankie seemed a little nervous, but he couldn't lie to Jane. They were really close and he knew she'd be cool about it. Dark brown locked on dark brown. "I'm on a date."

Jane's eyebrow quirked and she nodded in understanding. Ma Rizzoli had a knack for meddling in her kids' lives, so certain things required a little remixing of the truth.

"Me too." The siblings shared a smirk. "This is Maura. Maura, this is my younger brother, Frankie," she introduced them.

"Nice to meet you." Frankie firmly shook Maura's hand.

"Pleasure to meet you, Frankie. I've heard quite a bit about you," Maura informed, eliciting an eyebrow quirk from Frankie in Jane's direction.

Then Frankie did his own little introductions.

"This is my date… Barry. That's Janie, my big sis," he said pointing to his sister, knowing very well how she felt about that nickname.

"You gotta stop calling me that, Frank. Good to meet you, Barry," Jane said as she shook the other boy's hand. "Good luck with my brother though, he's a total spaz."

Barry and Jane shared a knowing smile.

"Call me Frost. And I'm sure I can handle him," he answered.

The Rizzoli's exchanged an amused look before leading the way to the ticket stand with their dates in tow.

"So, wanna make it a group thing?" Frankie suggested.

"Why not?" Jane answered.

"Right on."

"Really? What is this, _That 70s Show_?" Jane quipped. They all laughed; even Maura who got the joke by accident, never having seen the show before.

"Don't pretend you didn't used to watch it." Frankie playfully shoved Jane.

"Only because of Mila Kunis." _D'oh_, thought Jane.

Frankie rolled his eyes, "Typical."

As they were getting tickets, the Rizzoli's got into a bit of a verbal scuffle of sorts with their respective dates over who would pay. "Cause I'm the guy," they both reasoned in a tone that left no room for argument. As ridiculous as it sounded to _them_, Maura and Frost decided to leave well enough alone and get back at them later.

"So, you ever been to an amusement park before, Maur?"

"No. This is my first time."

Jane wasn't really expecting her to say that, it was pretty rhetorical, but at the same time she wasn't surprised. Frankie and Frost most certainly were, judging by their incredulous stares.

"Really?" they both asked in unison.

"Well, yes. I usually frequented history museums and art galleries with my parents as a child. Did you know that the first themed amusement park was opened in the year 1582 in Denmark? It wasn't until 1895 that the first permanent amusement park in North America was opened, which is the Sea Lion Park at Coney Island in Brooklyn," Maura shared with the class.

"Wow, so it took you only… 117 years to finally go to one?"

Maura was learning not to entertain some of Jane's more sarcastic statements. There was just no winning.

"Says the girl who wouldn't come here for a whole year after watching Final Destination 3," Frankie helpfully supplied.

Frost answered to Maura's lost look.

"Final Destination is a popular series of movies, basically about weird ways a bunch of people die. FD3 had this massacre on a roller-coaster in the beginning."

"Well, to be fair, although the risk of injury is incredibly low, on average, 4 deaths on average occur per year on roller-coaster rides in the US of A."

"Exactly! Thanks, babe," Jane praised with a peck to Maura's cheek, causing the brainy brunette to blush. "But at least I'm not afraid of clowns…"

"Ay! Low blow. Could we just pick a ride already?" came the annoyed retort.

"Maur, since this is your first rodeo, we'll let you pick the first few rides and stuff."

"Oh! I wouldn't know where to begin."

Maura looked around, index finger tapping her pursed lips, calculating the risk to reward ratio of every activity in sight. The other three were patient for all of eleven seconds before sharing a look and saying in unison, "Bumper cars!"

"Good choice, Maur." And off they went.

On their way to the car rides, they encountered a crowd gathered around one of the activities, obstructing their path. According to some passersby, some girl was showing off and winning prize after prize at the shooting range. Upon hearing this, the Rizzoli's ears perked right on up.

"You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?" asked Frankie.

"Oh yeah," answered Jane, pulling up the sleeves of her plaid shirt. "Let's give 'em a real gun show."

They swaggered over to the counter to find a bored guy with a jewfro working the stand.

"We want in," said Frankie, laying down some tickets.

The park employee just took them and handed him two toy guns to start the game. "Each gun's got 10 shots. Use 'em wisely, and good luck," he said with a faint leer before going back to reading his dirty magazine.

The girl who had garnered such a big crowd in the first place fired off her last shot and the people went ape-shit. Another girl carrying a bunch of large teddy bears gratefully pecked her lips and handed her a soda to sip on as they made to leave, but Jane Rizzoli's voice stopped them dead in their tracks.

"Not so fast there. What's say we make this interesting, eh?" she said with a cocky grin, one hand in her denim pocket while the other received a toy gun from her brother.

The thirsty girl turned around with a shit-eating grin on her face.

"Whataya got in mind?" she asked.

Jane and Frankie shared a brief look.

"Winner takes all," said Frankie, motioning with his head to the stuffed goods in their potential opponent's possession.

"And what do I get when you lose?" came the immediate reply. Clearly cockiness was in the air.

"Calm down, Cooper. You know there's no way that's happening."

Riley rolled her eyes and said, "Still got a Texas-sized ego, Rizzoli?"

"Well, y'know what they say about big egos…" smirked Jane.

"Actually, I don't _wanna_ know. Next round of chilli cheese fries is on you after I kick your butts."

"You always were a big dreamer. But y'know what they say about big dreams…"

"Any room for one more?" interjected Frost.

The three gunners glanced at Frost then at the jewfro guy. Only receiving a pointed look, Frankie fished out more tickets and got another toy gun in return.

"Here. Don't hurt yourself," said the Boston-Italian boy with a wink as he handed it over.

Frost grabbed his gun and thought to himself, _let's see who's actually 'the guy' in this relationship_.

Meanwhile…

"Suzie Chang?"

"Oh my Gosh! Maura Isles? Wait, you remember me?"

"Of course. You were always my toughest competition. How are you?"

"I'm good-"

"Wait, you two know each other?" Jane interrupted.

"Yeah. We competed against each other at the National Young Scientists Expo from 2004-2010," said Riley Cooper's companion.

"Lemme guess, Maura won?" Jane concluded, making the over-achiever blush once again. "Don't be shy. Look at **me**. I'm about to kick Cooper's caboose right here in front of everyone cause I know I'm awesome at this. If you got it, flaunt it, babe. Now watch this."

The crowd was abuzz with excited chatter as Riley, Jane, Frankie and Frost got lined up against the counter, assuming their shooting stances.

"Whoever gets the most hits wins."

They cocked their guns and aimed for their targets.

"Could someone count us down?"

"On your marks…" the whole audience said in unison, "get set…" then an over-excited kid with cotton candy in his hair shouted "Go!"

* * *

_Later that same day…_

"Phew, I'm stuffed," said Frankie, throwing a used napkin on the table.

"Careful there, bubble boy. How you gonna fit in your baseball gear if you keep stuffin' yourself like a Thanksgiving turkey?" Jane chuckled at her brother.

"I'll just borrow yours then," he retorted, earning him a swift kick in the shin. Everyone else laughed at them.

"Rizzoli, thanks for the meal, but me and Suze gotta get goin' so long," Riley announced after wiping her face and fingers of chilli sauce.

"Any time, Coop. Thanks for the trade-off." She bumped Riley's fist. "And it was nice meeting you, Suzie."

"Likewise," replied the Science fair runner-up, "And good seeing you, Maura."

"Yes, good indeed. Good-bye, Suzie and it was a pleasure meeting you, Riley."

The departing girls waved good-bye to everyone and headed out of the café.

"So, where'd you learn to shoot like that there, Frost?" Jane asked the co-champion of the shoot-out. He and Riley beat Jane by one target and Frankie by three. They decided to meet in the middle of their little wager with Jane buying lunch and Riley letting go of any teddy bear of Maura's choice. Then they all played a bunch of other stuff.

"My Dad's a marine. He'd take me to the range sometimes."

"Cool." said Jane, impressed.

"What about you? You're pretty good yourself."

"I know, right?" concurred Jane in a fake Valley Girl accent, which they all found quite funny. "Nah, I'm just kidding. But I've been going to the shooting range every Friday after school for a month now. I'm enrolling in the Police Academy soon, so I figured I'd get a head start on the bad-assery."

"You wanna be a cop?" asked Frost, impressed more than shocked.

"Oh yeah. A detective eventually, homicide."

"I dunno if I've got the stomach for that. My Dad wants me to join the Navy, but, behind all these muscles," he flexed, "I'm really just a computer nerd at heart." Frost sounded a little frustrated with his revelation.

"Then do what you're good at. But more importantly, what you love." Frankie said, patting him on his thigh.

"Yeah, I guess. I guess we'll see."

"Computer intelligence personnel have often proved vital in any modern Police Department's resources for _crushing_ many cases. Perhaps you'll consider a career in that path?" offered Maura.

"It's crack, not crush, Maur. But that's a good point."

_Bzzz. Bzzz._

"Oh no." Jane sighed as she picked up her ringing mobile phone.

"Really? The Jaws theme song? Who is that, Ma?"

She held up her index finger in Frankie's direction as she answered.

"Hey Ma… I'm fine, Ma… Yes, I ate. I'm in a café right now… We, uhm, the shelter let us go early…"

Frankie laughed at her for that one.

"…Frankie?" she asked a little too perkily.

His eyes bulged out and he shook his head vigorously to show he did not wish to talk to his mother.

"Have I seen him? I, uh, yeah. I think I may have seen him on the Big Bang Theory…"

Frost chuckled as Frankie sighed in relief, mouthing 'I owe you' to his big sis.

"I'm not being a smart-ass… Then why don't you-… You've got his number, right?…" then there was a long pause as the Rizzoli matriarch's voice droned on for a full 8 minutes on the other end of the line. Jane even got to finish her fries, Maura's fries and ask for the bill in the mean-time. Then suddenly, "You did what?!"

"Uh-oh." said Frankie, knowing all too well that their meddling mother had done it again.

"Y'know what, I gotta hang up. I'll talk to you later, Ma. Bye." Jane cut the call and almost slammed her phone on the counter.

After a long moment of silently stewing in anger, Jane said "Guess who's joining us for Sunday dinner tomorrow?"

"You look upset…"

"Ya think?"

"…so, I'm assuming it's-"

"Joey-fucking!-Grant, Frankie." Jane slammed her fist down to punctuate the curse word.

"Jane, language."

"Sorry."

Ignoring that weird little exchange, Frank mumbled, "Does she never learn?" rolling his eyes at his mother and feeling bad that Jane gets all the flack but grateful that it isn't him.

"Apparently not," Jane muttered back as she paid the bill.

"Then you might wanna stay away from the cutlery at the table. That guy annoys the snot out of me too."

"I think I'm gonna go. You done, Maur?"

Maura dabbed a napkin gracefully over her lips, nodding.

"Later, guys." Jane scooted out of the booth then waited for Maura.

"Enjoy the rest of your evening, gentlemen."

"You too, Maura," said Frost with a smile.

"Yeah, enjoy Jane's temper tantrum," remarked the other boy, earning him a glare from his sister. Maura just smiled politely and let Jane guide her outside with a firm hand at the small of her back.

Safely out of earshot, Frankie turned to Frost.

"I'm pretty sure she was wearing Jane's shoes just now."

"Sharing clothes already?"

"Ten bucks says there's a U-Haul waiting outside right now."

"You're on."

"Not yet, but maybe we can fix that." Frankie replied suggestively. You can lead a Rizzoli out of the gutter, but…

Frost smirked as they both leaned in to each other, then he stopped.

"Only if you admit we're both the guy," he whispered.

Frankie rolled his eyes then relented, "Fine. We're both the guy," he said before their lips met in a hot PDA.

* * *

A little later on the other side of town, a preoccupied Jane parked her car near the driveway outside the Isles estate. Her thoughts were consumed with how her Ma always had a gift for rubbing her the wrong way, even with the best of intentions, but this took the cake. Inviting a boy she knows Jane can't stand into their home for dinner, and most likely another set-up. If only there was a way to get her to back off for once and for all.

"Are you okay, Jane?" asked Maura, breaking the other girl out of her reverie with a soft hand on her forearm.

"What? Oh yeah, I'm fine. Just, uh, dreading tomorrow's-"

Light bulb.

"Maura, would you like to join me and my-" she cleared her throat, "I mean my family and I for dinner tomorrow night? It's nothing fancy really. Just food, alotta food, and my Ma and Frankie and Tommy'll be there. Well, Joey Grant too, but feel free to ignore him."

"You want me to meet your family?"

"You already met Frankie so… one down, two to go, y'know? No big deal…" she paused to ponder her phrasing. "Unless it _is_ a big deal, then you don't have-"

"I want to," Maura quickly let known. "I mean, it _is_ a big deal to _me_, but it doesn't have to mean anything if you-"

"No! Yes. I mean, no as in…" frustrated sigh. "Okay wait, let's try this again." Jane exited the driver's side and rushed round to open Maura's door once again. She took Maura's hands, a deep breath and then looked into her eyes sincerely. Then she pecked Maura's cheek for an extra confidence boost. It worked.

"Maura, I know we've only been on two dates, and if you feel like I'm comin' on too strong just say so, but here's the deal. I'm not much of a talker, about feelings and sh-tuff, but here goes anyway. I'm glad you met my brother and some of my friends and we all got to hang out and all. They like you, I can tell, but mostly I just want everyone to know what an awesome person you are. So I'd like you to meet the rest of the Rizzoli clan, and hell, even Grant. But I'd also like you to go as my, uh, my girlfriend. Officially. Whataya say?"

Maura bit her bottom lip to try and tame the thousand-watt smile threatening to consume her blushing face. She looked down at their linked fingers then off to the side and back down again, all while Jane tried to meet her gaze so she could read her expression.

"I'll think about it," Maura finally said, deciding to make Jane sweat… for all of one second.

"You'll-"

"I thought about it. My answer's yes."

Maura grabbed the collar of Jane's shirt and pulled her girlfriend down into a passionate, yet sweet, kiss. When the magnitude of the moment finally caught up with her, Jane placed her hands on Maura's waist, gently pressing her against the car, and deepened the lip-lock to convey everything she was feeling to her girlfriend. Joy, surprise, relief and, as they went on, arousal. Eventually coming up for air, they wore matching dimpled smiles. They kissed again, but this time slower and more sensually with Maura's arms wrapping around Jane's neck.

"Mm…" sighed Maura when they ultimately rested their foreheads against each other, "Is this how you kiss when you're a kept woman? Because I'm rather enjoying it, I must say."

Jane's deep chuckle reverberated through their connected bodies.

"This is how I kiss to apologize in advance for anything that can and will happen tomorrow… but now that you're my girlfriend-"

"As **you** are _mine_…" reminded the honey-brunette with a pointed look.

"-I guess I don't need an excuse to kiss you like that now, do I?"

Before Maura could answer, her lips were already a little busy. Her last clear thought was, 'Wow, my girlfriend's a really great kisser'.

* * *

**A/N**: Rizzles, Frostie & Chooper all in the same place. What more could you ask for? What, another chapter? Okie-dokie then. Review if you want to.


	4. Chapter 4: Girlfriend

**4. Girl Friend**

* * *

Angela was putting together the finishing touches on her famous, home-made gnocchi when the doorbell rang. _Probably that Joey-kid_, she considered. If so, he's very punctual. Heaven forbid if that trait should rub off on her Janie… She rolled her eyes internally.

With a last taste test and a quick wipe of her hands on a dish cloth, Angela hymn-hummed her way to the front door. In a practiced motion, she flung the door wide open.

"Joe- oh!"

Having obviously expected someone else, she's surprised to find a striking young girl standing on the porch instead. Angela subtly (_for Angela Rizzoli_) looked her up and down. With her immaculate sun-kissed hair, lightly freckled, fair skin and brilliant hazel eyes, this girl was a sight for sore eyes. Then Angela remembered her eldest son and daughter mentioning inviting some people over to dinner.

"Come in, come in," welcomed the Rizzoli matriarch with a smile, all but yanking the poor girl inside.

"Oh," exclaimed the visitor, a little startled. "Thank you," she started politely once safely inside. "You must be Mrs. Rizzoli. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Maura." She wasn't an advocate for making assumptions, but Maura felt sure enough that the tanned, older woman who had just opened the door to the address she was given, wearing a pink 'Kiss the Cook' apron, was definitely the mother of one Jane Rizzoli.

"Maura, what a lovely name," gushed the Italian mother with a cheerful lilt in her unique voice. _Such nice manners too_, she thought. "Call me Angela. I love your dress."

That last comment made Maura glad to have sent those pictures to Jane the night before, begging her opinion on an appropriate outfit for the 'Royal Rizzoli Feast' as Jane had teased.

"Thank you, Mrs- uh, Angela," said Maura. "It's a vintage Vivienne Westwood." Maura beamed and almost did a twirl with the amount of relief and pride at having her girlfriend's mother's instant approval, even in this small way.

"Ooh, that's so nice." Angela was impressed, to say the least. Someone had good taste in girls. "You must be here for Frankie," Angela concluded with a sure nod, "Lemme call him down for ya-"

"Actually-" But before Maura could correct her, Ma Rizzoli's loud, scratchy voice had already made its way up the stairs, and probably around the neighborhood too, _sheesh_.

"Frankie! There's a girl here!" she announced most unceremoniously.

"Not mine!" came the disembodied reply from her son.

"Frank Junior, get your butt down here right now!"

"Okay-okay, I'm comin', jeez!" Frankie's heavy footsteps grew louder as he made his way down the staircase and into the lobby. "Oh, hey Maura," he smiled in greeting.

Maura returned his smile with her own display of pearly whites, happy to see a familiar face. "Hello, Frankie." The almost undetectable relief in her tone prompted Frankie to wonder if his mother had done or said something embarrassing already.

Angela looked on at the minor interaction in major unbridled excitement and anticipation. "Well…?" she probed with waggling eyebrows, causing the two teens to turn in her direction. "Go on then, give her a hug. Don't mind _me_."

Bingo. The 'something embarrassing'. Frankie and Maura laughed nervously.

Awk. Ward.

"Don't mind my brother," said Tommy. Wait, Tommy? Materializing out of seemingly nowhere and startling Maura, the boy spoke on. "He's not the sensitive, gentleman-type like me. C'mere, _I'll_ hug you." The youngest Rizzoli opened his arms in overt welcome. They hung there in mid-air for some moments.

Awk. Ward.

Frankie rolled his eyes at his brother, knowing very well that Jane would not approve. "It's _your_ funeral, buddy." And that was an understatement.

"You must be Tommy?" Maura addressed the wannabe-Casanova with an uncertain smile. She didn't particularly care for the way he was eyeing her.

"And you must be Texas, cause damn, girl. You're hot!" Tommy assembled his best 'flirty' smile.

Wow. Frankie could not believe he was related to… to **that**.

"Don't mind my brother. He just hit puberty." Frankie offered in apology on behalf of the younger boy, "Not all of him survived."

"Don't tease your brother, Frankie," scolded the Rizzoli matriarch who had been in her own head trying to picture the grandbabies Frankie and Maura would pop out some day.

"Is Jane upstairs?" Good subject-change, thought Maura.

"Yeah, she's takin' a dump." Thwack! "Ow! What the hell!" protested Tommy, having received two back-hands upside the head from his Ma and brother for that crass comment. '_Tough crowd, jeez'_, he thought as he made his way to go watch some TV instead.

At that opportune moment, the doorbell rang again just as Jane Rizzoli swaggered on downstairs in all her 'just showered' glory. Maura's heart stopped.

In a deliciously revealing plain white tank top, knee-length denim shorts and her wet hair in a bunny-tail, Jane Rizzoli looked hot.

"Jesus, this hurts like a mother…" Jane stopped her muttering mid-step when she looked up to find that her honorary guest had already arrived in all her designer glory. Her heart sped up. "Hey, you're early," she said, struggling to contain herself and her voice.

The world seemed to vanish for an interminable moment as chocolate brown locked on hazel. Then reality checked in.

"She's actually on **time**," interjected Ma Rizzoli, "which is more than I can say for _you_, who actually **lives** here. Look, you aren't even dressed yet. Where's the dress I left out for ya?"

"It's where you left it," Jane quipped, earning an annoyed look. "C'mon, Ma. I'm not exactly naked here," she then argued, rolling her eyes as she hopped down the last step. Maura was beginning to recognize that this particular trait ran in the family. She mutely observed the dynamic between her girlfriend and her mother.

"I'll go get the door," Frankie huffed seeing as everyone else was ignoring the doorbell, and also probably as an escape.

When her girlfriend got close enough, Maura noticed something amiss in Jane's appearance.

"Jane, what happened to your face?" she asked with so much concern in her voice and face, Jane subconsciously touched her own to make sure she wasn't missing or growing something.

"She was rough-housing with her brothers again." Angela rolled her eyes this time as if this was a regular enough occurrence not to warrant any worry. "Where're your shoes?" she switched topics, placing her hands on her hips. "What if Joey was here?"

The scolded teen counted to ten in her head. The night was young, but her mother's routine was already getting old, and getting on her nerves.

"Here, you can wear these." Maura pulled out a pair of shoes from her oversized handbag, offering them to Jane.

"Uh… these aren't mine." Jane replied a little confused, giving the nice-looking shoes a once-over.

"I know. I thought these would look better." Maura tried again, handing the brand new pair over.

"You bought me new shoes?" Jane asked amused, further inspecting the new ones with a level of suspicion.

"Yes." Maura nodded emphatically, mentally patting herself on the back for having insisted on express-delivery from the internet boutique. _Not that she thought Jane dressed badly or anything, it was more a matter of wanting to do something nice for her girlfriend_. She waited upon Jane's reaction.

"Because you didn't like _mine_." It wasn't a question. Maura suddenly felt a little flustered. Uh-oh. Lie alert!

"I… can reset your nose for you, if you'd like." Phew, that was close…

"I knew it!" …or not. "You really can't lie, can you?" Jane accused playfully, stepping closer to accept the diversion offer.

"Jane, there's really no need to sacrifice craft for comfort. This may hurt a little," she warned.

Jane's mouth gaped in mock-shock and genuine triumph at having caught Maura in a fib.

"And apparently there's no need to spare my feelings for fashion either, huh?" Jane almost pouted, playing the _bruised ego_ card. Crack. "Ow! A little?!"

"Perhaps I shouldn't have overestimated you then?" Maura quirked an eyebrow to test just how bruised this monumental ego was. She let go of Jane's face but remained close.

"Careful, Dr Isles. Janie's got a gun," the aspiring Homicide Detective smirked down at her gorgeous girlfriend, wanting so badly to kiss her. Hold up. Kiss? Girlfriend? Ma! Jane suddenly stepped back, searching and finding her mother's curious eyes directed straight **at** them.

_Them_ being Frankie and his dinner-guest. That was close.

"Frankie, what took you so long to get the door?"

The two boys blushed.

"We were, uhm," he scratched his neck nervously. "This is my _friend_, Barry. Barry, Ma."

"Hi, Mrs. Rizzoli. These are for you."

It wasn't that Joey-kid – again – but Angela could never turn away a handsome gentleman with flowers.

At that moment Maura realised two things:

1. Jane was yet to introduce her to her mother as anything at all, and

b) It dawned on her that Frankie wasn't 'out' to his mother yet. Which possibly meant the same for Jane. Her _girlfriend_, Jane.

In all their short time together they'd been very open and tactile, so how exactly was she supposed to behave towards her girlfriend around the watchful eye of her girlfriend's evidently clueless mother? The couple hadn't really discussed how this was supposed to work. Maura started to panic.

Jane watched as Maura's face turned from a turned-on blush to a freaked-out pale in two seconds flat. Uh-oh.

"Janie, go put these in some water wouldja? Frankie and TOMMY, go set the table. Dinner's almost ready."

Unable to suppress her manners, Maura offered to help Mrs- uh, Angela. Angela glared at Jane in a 'why can't you be more like _her'_ way. Jane rolled her eyes in a 'it's torture sometimes' way.

"You have a lovely home… Angela," complimented Maura.

"Thank you, sweetheart."

They carried on with some small talk as dinner made its way to the table, then, as Angela realised that damn Joey-kid was a no show, they said Grace before digging in.

* * *

Dinner was uncharacteristically quiet, apart from the sounds of eating, as eyes were left to do the talking, mouths too busy chewing. Tommy's gaze was absorbedly focused on Maura's 'dress'. Particularly the elaborate detailing around the bust area. Or at least that's what he said when Maura cleared her throat and shifted uncomfortably. Jane was staring her youngest brother down so hard he actually felt it. In his shin. Or maybe her foot slipped, po-tay-toe po-tah-toe. Frankie caught a glimpse of the encounter, but most of his attention was trained on the short, dark and handsome boy sitting next to him, eating like it was the last supper.

All-seeing Angela Rizzoli's eyes observed everything at once. She caught Frankie smiling entertained by his friend's appetite. She saw how Janie threw dirty looks at Tommy for ogling her friend. She saw Maura place a calming hand on Janie's forearm. What surprised her more than that the contact was allowed, is that it worked. Hmm… She noticed how, every now and then, the girls would look over at each other and share a special smile. She could spot that kinda look a mile away. Frank Senior used to look at her that way back when they first met.

Light bulb.

"Oh," she said out loud, finally putting the pieces together. THAT EXPLAINS SO MUCH, her brain screamed.

Jane looked over at her mother having heard the little outburst. She noticed a familiar but nonetheless peculiar look on her face, like she'd just cracked the Da Vinci code. "You okay, Ma?" she asked, eyes narrowed in suspicion more than concern.

Everyone else looked at Angela too.

"Janie, is there something you wanna tell me?" She cut right to the chase.

_She knows_, Jane panicked. She'd only ever seen that weird look in her Ma's eyes twice before in her life. The first time Jane can remember was when her Ma found out that the late Frank Senior had been secretly taking 11-year old Jane to the ball park instead of ballet class. Jane was grounded for 2 months. Frank slept on the old couch for 6 nights. The second time was when Tommy got caught with a dirty magazine in his room. He'd actually stolen it from Jane's room, but where would he begin explaining **that**? That was a month and a half ago and he's still grounded.

Both times Angela had a look of utter disappointment on her face. It was worse than being yelled at. She always got over it though. Eventually.

Lifting her and Maura's interlinked fingers onto the dinner-table in plain view of everyone, Jane cleared her throat awkwardly.

"Uh, I'm pretty sure you've already figured it out," Jane looked away from their hands straight into her mother's penetrating but unreadable stare. She cleared her throat again, nerves getting the better of her.

Maura squeezed her girlfriend's hand in what she hoped was both a comforting and reassuring gesture. She could tell that this was difficult for Jane, but nonetheless an important moment.

"Ma… okay, here's the deal. I'm gay, okay? There's not much you or anyone can do to change that, even if I wanted you to," Jane started, a little defensively, "But yeah, that's pretty much why you've never seen me with boys in that way, or heard me talk about boys in that way. It's 'cause I like girls… in _that_ way. More specifically," she turned towards Maura's nervous smile which brought out her own, "_this_ girl right here." Jane turned back to address her mother. "I like her a lot, Ma," she repeated earnestly, "And I can tell you like her too, which makes it ten times easier to tell you that Maura's my girlfriend. Not a girl who's my friend, or a phase, or anything like that. She's the girl I'm falling for." Jane had been talking straight from the heart, uncensored, but then paused when she realised what she just realised. She whipped her head in Maura's direction.

Maura had a look of shock on her face. A solitary tear spilled from her eye which Jane's thumb was quick to stop in its path.

"Shh… don't cry," Jane whispered gently.

"I-"

"I know." Jane nodded in understanding. They would have to talk about this later though. "So, uh, yeah. That's pretty much it. I'm a lesbian and Maur's my awesome girlfriend. And gay, straight or 'end-of-the-world' desperate, Joey Grant would never be an option. Any questions?"

"Were you gonna tell me if I hadn't put two and two together?" Angela asked with eyes narrowed.

"Yes," Jane answered immediately. "I was just… building up to it. And saving up money in case you kicked me out." Jane tried to be flippant, but she felt too uncertain of her mother's current disposition to even laugh herself.

Before the meddling matriarch could say any more, a bang under the table and Frankie's shout broke into the moment. All eyes turned to him. He drew his annoyed gaze away from Frost and spoke to his Ma quickly.

"Okay-okay, yeah me too. I'm gay, I'm dating Barry and Joey's gross. I was gonna tell you after dessert though," he added with an anxious smile.

The doorbell rang once again that night, more tenaciously. Everyone ignored it, waiting on Ma Rizzoli's verdict, so to speak.

"Don't think I'm not up-to-date with the technology these days," she said in a reprimanding tone, confusing everyone. "Whether you're gay, straight or bicycle I still want my grandbabies."

A collective sigh of relief was breathed out of two pairs of lungs.

"So… you're okay with it?" Jane asked tentatively, eyes flicking between her brother and mother.

The doorbell rang again.

"Janie, Frankie, I love you both no matter what. Even you, Tommy. As long as you aren't hurting anybody and you're happy."

"Thanks, Ma."

"Love you too, Ma."

"You coulda told me earlier though," Angela complained in her usual nagging voice. "I mean, what _is_ it with you kids. You don't tell me anything anymore."

The doorbell rang out thrice more, accompanied by a few loud knocks and a muffled but urgent, authoritative voice.

"Boston Police! Open up!"

The Rizzoli's whirled around to glare at Tommy.

"What have you done _now_?" asked Angela, hurrying to the front door. She opened it cautiously.

"Evening, Ma'am. I'm Officer Korsak." The policeman showed her his badge.

"How may I help you, Officer?"

Officer Korsak pulled out a CCTV screenshot to show the woman. "Sorry to disturb your evening, but do you recognize these girls?"

"Yes. That's my Janie." Angela didn't even hesitate to respond. She could recognize that hair anywhere. "And Maura?" This surprised her. "In a bed?!"

Everyone else still at the table heard everything and turned expectantly towards the female fugitives.

"Oh shit."

* * *

**A/N:** My ego's flexing. A little. Thanks for the follows and favourites, but mostly the reviews. Thanks for reading, and review if you absolutely have to… cough-you absolutely have to-cough.


	5. Chapter 5: Girl with the Hazel Eyes

**5. Girl with the Hazel Eyes**

* * *

Jane let out a sigh of complete and utter relief. She was lying on her bed, hands folded over her stomach. Good thing she wasn't wearing any shoes because as drained as she felt, they probably would have stayed on.

She had long since given up on trying eavesdropping on what was happening downstairs. After making up some lame, mumbo-jumbo excuse about going window-shopping with Maura to replace her _pink, foofy canopy bed_ that she hated so passionately, Ma Rizzoli had sent her upstairs to her bedroom with the pointed parting words, "I'm not done with you, missy." Barry's Mom and Maura's driver fetched them soon after that.

_Bzzz… GIRL, with the hazel eyes. Aye-aye-aye… Bzzz…_

Jane nearly chipped a tooth falling off her bed to get to her phone from the charger on the other side of the room. She always got excited when she heard that ring-tone, and especially now after the way things were left tonight without a proper good-bye, she had to talk to her hazel-eyed girl.

_Bzzz… GIRL, with the haze-_

It was a text.

'_Is everything alright?'_

Jane smiled and plopped back down on her bed. For sure her girlfriend was worried she'd been arrested, or worse, that Angela was punishing Jane herself. Jane suddenly felt a wave of mischief wash over her.

'_Let's just say I'm not dropping the soap any time soon.'_

She pressed send. The reply was instant.

'_Jane, oh my word! They arrested you? Give me 20 minutes to come over and bail you out.'_

Jane couldn't help but laugh out loud at her girlfriend's reaction. Typical Maura, so adorable. What had she ever done to deserve her, Jane wondered. Then she realised that Maura must be seriously on her way to the Boston city Police Department's jail to bust her felonious girlfriend out, blueprint tattoo and everything. So much for kidding around. Time to nip the joke in the bud.

'_I'm just kidding, babe. lol'_

Jane flopped back on her pillow and waited a minute. _Bzzz…_

'_Me too. ;-) Was I funny?'_

Jane shook her head in amazement. She'd been beaten at her own game. Go figure. Her heart melted at the thought of the nerdy girl making her very first joke. She wanted to drive over to her house-palace and kiss her all over. Instead, she settled on a text.

'_lol You're adorable. I miss you '_

This time, Maura's customized tone signaled an incoming phone call.

"Hey," Jane's voice came out as a husky whisper. She smiled into the phone, lying back on her bent elbow and staring out the window into the night sky. She could hear the smile in Maura's voice when she answered.

"Hey…"

"So…"

They chuckled at the unusual awkwardness.

"Yes, Jane?"

"I, uh, did you get my last text?"

"Your last text?" Maura played dumb. "What did it say?" she asked coyly.

Jane softly cleared her throat thinking up the best way to say the words that were so easy to text. She didn't want to sound cheesy or anything.

"That, uh, you're adorable."

Maura rolled her eyes, knowing Jane was beating around the forestry, and made her way to sit by her large bedroom window. The stars were especially bright, the moon full.

"Is that so?"

"Uh-huh."

"Does that mean you liked my joke?"

Jane smiled adoringly, wishing she was with the other girl so she could pinch her cheeks then kiss them better… then her lips… and everywhere else.

"Yeah, Maur. You're a natural," Jane praised, although a little sarcastically.

"You know, you're adorable too sometimes," Maura said and quickly covered her mouth to muffle a snicker, anticipating Jane's response. The first thing she heard was an eye-roll. Yep, with Jane it's even audible. Then Jane scoffed.

"Wha- Psh, c'mon. Is this how you get when you're sleepy? Cause you're making stuff up now."

"No, I'm serious. Like how you threw the shooting competition yesterday? I know you did it on purpose."

Maura bit her lip, wondering if Jane would deny it completely. Jane felt a slight blush at realising she was busted. Trust Maura to know everything.

"What makes you say _that_?" she asked, genuinely curious.

"I was observing you very closely."

"I bet you were," she purred suggestively.

Maura was reminded of Jane's strong, tanned arms as she fired that toy gun with such cool confidence, and the way her eyes had travelled from arms to glorious gluteus maximus, to toe, checking her girlfriend out.

"Always," she concurred with a naughty smile. "Anyway, I _saw_ you glance over at your brother's progress. You finished first, but still had one pellet left when you put your gun down. I counted."

Jane rolled her eyes, "Of course you did. Okay, you got me. But I only did it so Frankie wouldn't feel so bad about missing _his_ y'know? Besides, winning's not everything."

"Oh really, Ms '_I'm gonna kick Cooper's caboose cause I'm so awesome_'?"

"Wow, your memory is frighteningly accurate."

"Thank you, I think," they both smiled at that.

"I was just kidding around with her. That's just how Coop and I are when we hang out. We talk smack and try to kick each other's ass at everything. Harmless fun, y'know?" Jane shrugged.

"A urinating contest is harmless fun?" Maura asked, perplexed.

"It's, uh, that's not how you- It's a pi- never mind. Yes, it's fun. And funny." Jane chortled to herself in memory. "One time we were playing darts at Riley's and we were tied, so we decided to add a blindfold into the mix. Epic fail. We got nowhere near the dartboard if the holes in the wall were any indication. We had to stop when one of us hit a light bulb."

Maura laughed along with her girlfriend, imagining the 'oh shit' look Jane must have had on her face. Another adorable thing about Jane. "Did you get into trouble?"

Jane snorted. "Hell no. We snuck out and bought a new one to replace it. Maura, how many lesbians does it take to change a light bulb?"

Maura paused in thought, wondering if this question was relevant at all. "One lesbian should suffice, but I see no correlation between one's sexuality and their ability to replace a light bulb. Is this a trick question?"

"No…" Jane dragged the word out almost impatiently, "I thought we already went over this, Chris Rock. It's a joke. And you're not really supposed to answer, it ruins the punch line."

"Oh okay. I have no idea, Jane. How many?" Maura played along.

"Two. One to change the bulb, and one not to change it."

"I don't get it."

"Never mind."

"So, about that last text you sent me. Was it just to say that I'm adorable?"

"No, I think there was more. I just can't seem to remember…" It was Jane's turn to play dumb.

"Jane…" Maura almost pouted.

"What?"

"I'd like to hear you say it, please."

"Say what?"

"Fine, I'm going to sleep." Maura bit her lip trying not to laugh.

"Hey now, c'mon. Relax. I think I remember now," Jane was quick to say.

"Oh, how convenient. I'm waiting."

At that moment, with their playful banter and lame jokes, Jane felt happy for the first time since her Pop went and got himself killed. The whole world faded away and the only thing she focused on was the thought of Maura and the way she made her feel. The way they just 'got' each other. It had only been three days but she knew the thing she had going on with Maura was for keeps. _Do not screw this up_, she thought.

"This weekend was the best I've had in forever y'know?" she started, honestly.

"I feel the same," Maura smiled, feeling for the first time, more than content. She thought back to that moment when Jane revealed to the whole dinner table that she was falling for her. She felt the same about that too.

"I know we're taking on the phone, but… I miss you, Maur." Jane's breath hitched on the last word.

Maura wiped away a tear she hadn't realised was running down her cheek. She'd never felt so wanted. So appreciated. She always felt like a wallflower or an annoying fly that people wanted to silence. Jane made her feel like what she has to say is the most important thing in the world and at the same time she teased her but made her feel like she's a part of something. No longer merely observing, but living.

"I miss you more," she said in an almost whisper as she wiped the moisture from her face.

A loud knock sounded at Jane's bedroom door quickly followed by, "Janie, you up?"

"Uh, I gotta go. Ma's here."

"Oh, of course. Good night, Jane."

"I'll call you tomorrow."

"Not if I call you first."

"Sweet dreams, babe."

By the time Jane had hung up, her Ma had already let herself in. No surprises there.

"Was that Maura?"

Jane sat up to face Angela better and crossed her legs.

"Yeah. We were just saying good night, since we didn't get the chance earlier." Jane looked down at her lap, fiddling with her phone.

Angela took in the sight of her rough-and-tumble tomboy daughter against the back-drop of her pink canopy bed. Then she burst out into a fit of laughter.

"Janie, if you didn't like your bed so much, why didn't you just _say_ so?" She tried to hold it in at the sight of Jane's answering glare.

"Ma, c'mon." Jane rolled her eyes. "I told you I didn't want this damn thing before you got it."

"Watch your mouth."

"Sorry."

"Poor Maura. She fell for the Rizzoli charm and went from photo shoots to mugshots." Her voice went higher in pitch towards the end of the sentence from trying to finish it before bursting out in more laughter.

Everyone's making jokes tonight, eh? Jane couldn't help but join in though. A laughing Angela was always pleasant and infectious, and she had to admit that this whole situation was a bit comical.

"Where on earth did you find that girl, Janie? I mean, she's practically perfect. Polite and pretty and-"

"The total opposite of me. Yeah, I know. I been askin' myself the same question." Jane sighed, finally tilting her head up. Her Ma was directly in front of her.

"She clearly feels the same about you, honey. She bought you shoes didn't she?" she commented, waving at the brand new pair on the floor by the bed.

Jane smiled fondly at that memory. Maura was so sweet and so caring. "Yeah, she's the best. Did you know she's a certified genius? You should hear her when she's on a roll, dishing out weird facts left, right and centre like some human google. I didn't get it at first but then I realised she can't help knowing every goddamn thing there is to know."

"She must be really smart then. Got good taste." Angela winked. Like, actually winked. As cool as the bonding thing was, _let that never happen again_, Jane thought.

Angela sat down next to her daughter. She took in Jane's nervous appearance and couldn't decide whether it was because of the cop incident or if she was still unsure about the coming out.

"I spoke with Officer Korsak," she started.

"And…?"

"He's a very nice man." Ma Rizzoli knew those were a dime a dozen, so she just had to comment on it.

"I'm sure he's a gem, Ma," the tough teen retorted with a smile, "What'd he say?"

"Well, he told me that it was protocol to follow up on even minor cases like these, but he wasn't about to arrest you for having a little fun." Jane sighed in relief. "He said don't do it again though."

"I won't. We won't." Jane replied quickly, hoping she didn't have a criminal record now. That would surely make it harder to become a cop one day.

Angela looked at her daughter, her beautiful, brilliant, brave little girl. It was rare that they got a chance to talk like this, so candidly. Jane was always very private, now she knew why. Tonight's revelation wasn't a total shock. She'd thought about it in passing many times throughout Janie's life but trusted her daughter would tell her if she was 'a gay'. She knows that with their Catholic upbringing it must have been hard for Jane to come out earlier, but she's glad Jane didn't deny it.

"I must admit though, Janie, when I saw you two were in bed in that picture, it kinda shocked and scared me at the same time. You both are so young. Maura can't be more than 16."

"She's 15," Jane mumbled.

"Look at that, 15. And I've never even heard of her till tonight."

"We met on Friday."

"Friday?" Angela's eyebrows merged into her hairline. "I thought you went to the shooting range. Never mind. Things sure do work fast with this generation."

This isn't the type of thing Jane likes to talk about with her Ma, but she wanted Angela to trust her. "Don't worry, we haven't done any of that yet. We almost did once," Angela's heart almost stopped, "but I stopped it."

"Thank goodness." Angela was trying very hard not to overreact to anything her daughter revealed. That way, the lines of communication would be open more often. But she was also curious about what went through her Janie's mind sometimes. She always did the right thing in the end, but what was her motivation. "May I ask why?" she asked tentatively.

"Well, it just didn't feel right - the timing. We'd just met, y'know? I really don't know what came over us, or where I got the strength to stop, but I did. For Maura especially, but for both of us."

The way Jane spoke of Maura caught Angela by surprise every time.

"I've never seen you like this. She must be really special to you."

"Yeah. I think-" Jane abruptly stopped, feeling she'd shared enough for one night. Some things she only wanted Maura to know.

"What is it, Janie?" Angela put a hand on Jane's knee, merely asking and not prying like she usually did.

"Nah, it's nothing. I should get some sleep. School and all." Jane waved it off.

"Alright, sweetie," Angela said as she got up to leave her daughter in peace. "You get some sleep… after you do the dishes."

"Ma!" Jane whined.

"What? I slaved over dinner. You gotta pull your weight somehow. What little weight you do have. How do you eat so much and stay so scrawny anyway? For the life of me…" she shook her head.

"Good genes, I guess." Jane winked. As much as her Ma was a pain in the 'gluteus maximus' as Maura says, her Ma has never left her side.

"I love you, baby. And I'm proud of you."

"I love you, Ma."

Angela carefully shut the door and made her way to her own bedroom. Jane sighed back into her pillow and closed her eyes. She tried to sort through the emotions and events of the past three days, but it only served to make her even more tired. She slowly dipped her toes into a river of sleep.

"Don't forget the dishes!" Angela's voice ruptured into her subconcious from all the way down the hall, startling her awake. Jane groaned and got up. It's torture sometimes, really.

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**A/N:** Thank you for reading. Review **only** if your psychic tells you to.

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**A/N2:** I interrupt this broadcast to shamelessly advertise my other story called **_The Odds_**. _Radar Detector_ is officially on vacation while I focus on that, so check it out!


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